Sigiriya

The floating castle of King Kasyapa

Sigiriya Rock Fortress

According to the legends, the creative mind behind the pleasure palace cum fortress named Sigiriya was a usurper named King Kashyapa, who walled his own father alive and stole the throne from the rightful heir Prince Moggalana. Once Moggalana retreated to South India to gather troops King Kashyapa moved the kingdom from Anuradhapura to Sigiriya, building his fortress cum pleasure palace on the summit of this huge rock. Keeping aside his rather disturbing acts, one cannot hide the fact that he is a genius in planning out the architecture of the entire kingdom, which still to this date baffles archaeologists for the complexities of the irrigation and many other frontiers. It is said that the site plan combined concepts of symmetry and asymmetry to deliberately intertwine the man-made geometrical and natural forms of the natural settings. Apart from the baffling construction, one should not miss the elaborative frescoes and mirror wall, which is said to be polished with so much effort that the stone wall reflected like a mirror. Nominated to be the 8th wonder of the world, Sigiriya should be a definite stop on your holiday in Sri Lanka.